My wife and I made sure we made it back into the convention hall Tuesday afternoon to hear Dave Ramsey speak. When we came in, he had already begun speaking. I was excited to hear him. I'm always excited to hear Dave speak; I'll admit I see him as a bit of a hero. My wife and I are Dave Ramsey fans and as soon as we get our house paid off, we're going to Nashville to do our debt-free scream. My kids even have the introduction to his radio show memorized. I was disappointed to hear grumbling in my section, and then murmurings afterward about his appearance. There were those who thought … [Read more...] about Why Dave Ramsey Was Not a Waste of Time at the SBC
missions
SBC 2018–Thankful
This post was originally posted at hiswordhisglory.wordpress.com I am a proud Southern Baptist and have spent the last 3 days at our annual meeting. There's been plenty of negativity surrounding our annual meeting, but I'm going to stick those aspects of the annual meeting for which I am thankful. Here are my top ten reasons to be thankful for SBC2018 We continue our belief in the inerrancy of scripture--There was no debate over Biblical interpretation, and there was nothing done that moved us towards a more liberal theology. while other denominations continue their liberal slide, … [Read more...] about SBC 2018–Thankful
Some Observations on Religious Freedom
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released it's annual report on April 18th. If you're interested, you can read the full version here, or the abridged version here. If you're unfamiliar with the work of USCIRF, they are responsible for monitoring the conditions of religious freedom around the globe and submitting reports to the White House, and to the Senate. They also lobby for legislation and other political action related to global religious freedom. In the style of fellow voices contributor William Thornton, I am going to offer my observations of … [Read more...] about Some Observations on Religious Freedom
How we pray for those we know who aren’t followers of Jesus
As a pastor, I often ponder how my church can be more effective at sharing the love and gospel of Jesus with our community. Ours is not a large town. We are a community of roughly 1700 people in a county of around 18,000. This presents certain challenges to evangelism: many people are commuters, we don’t really have a “town center” where large numbers of people regularly gather (well, maybe the football field in the fall), and many people said a prayer and were baptized as a kid in VBS or the likes, so they don’t think they need anything else despite the fact that little in their life … [Read more...] about How we pray for those we know who aren’t followers of Jesus
Red Cup Redux (or: missions giving must be in our blood)
It was about a year ago that us Southern Baptists learned a somber truth: our International Mission Board had been deficit spending for several years and selling property to try to make ends meet to support the almost 5000 foreign missionaries on the field. This was not sustainable and to break even the IMB would need to find a way to bring hundreds of missionaries back home. The shock rippled throughout our churches and challenges were issued. If we did not find a way to increase support to our missions organizations then we were going to lose many seasoned frontline troops in the war to … [Read more...] about Red Cup Redux (or: missions giving must be in our blood)
Refugees: We might disagree, but can we at least agree that this is a terrible reason?
If by now you have not heard about the Syrian refugee crisis, then you’ve been hiding in the no man’s land of northern Canada. Based on everything I’ve seen on the news, blogs, Twitter, and Facebook, my guess would be that if polled your church, family, and friends about what should be done then you would find sharply divided opinions. It should not surprise us. Disagreement runs in our blood. Personally, I think we should accept those we can. Yes, we should vet them and check their backgrounds to the best of our ability; but we should not let the threat of a few terrorists stop us from … [Read more...] about Refugees: We might disagree, but can we at least agree that this is a terrible reason?
About Those Red Cups (or: A Lottie Moon Giving Challenge)
We’ve all probably seen the Facebook links, read the news, and rolled our eyes. Some guy somewhere with a YouTube account is claiming Starbucks’ plain red and green Christmas cups are a war against the Christian faith. Yawn, and bah-humbug to him. When Jesus prayed, “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world” (John 17:14), he wasn’t talking Starbucks cups or cheery Happy Holidays! from retail employees. And that isn’t what this post is about anyway. Our brothers and sisters in other countries, especially … [Read more...] about About Those Red Cups (or: A Lottie Moon Giving Challenge)
WHY THE IMB’S DECISION TO BRING HOME 600-800 MISSIONARIES IS A WELCOME WAKE-UP CALL FOR THE CHURCH
Several years ago I pastored a small church in East Texas. Our annual budget was slim, and we barely scraped enough together each week to pay the light bill. A stout conviction of our fellowship, however, was giving to missions. We designated 10% of our annual budget to it. The experience was difficult, one that made me wonder if our tiny church with our even tinier budget really made a scratch on the proverbial surface of the lost world. One summer I found myself in Nazareth Village in Israel. I was on a tour of the country alongside several other pastors. While walking into a bookstore, one … [Read more...] about WHY THE IMB’S DECISION TO BRING HOME 600-800 MISSIONARIES IS A WELCOME WAKE-UP CALL FOR THE CHURCH
SBC Resolution on Unity
This resolution was submitted by Chris Roberts for consideration at the SBC 2012. Whether or not this resolution makes it to the floor for a vote remains to be seen, but this forum provides us an opportunity to discuss the resolution. I appreciate Chris, and the men and women who labored to form this resolution. Let's give it some discussion and consideration prior to SBC 2012 in New Orleans, LA. RESOLUTION ON A SPIRIT OF COOPERATION IN MISSIONS AND EVANGELISM DESPITE THEOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES WHEREAS, our nation and world continue in a state of moral and spiritual crisis which … [Read more...] about SBC Resolution on Unity
Jedi Council: Advice for Church Funding Requests
After recently taking my 9 year-old cousin to see Star Wars: The Phantom Menace 3D for his birthday, I've decided to pretend that our SBC Voices comment club is our own version of the Jedi Council and to do a few posts asking for wise, sage, and Yoda-like counsel. To quote Yoda himself, "Up to you it is if happen such wise counsel will." : Let me begin with a disclaimer: I fully admit that I am asking these questions because of direct and personal benefit I hope to receive from the answers provided. As discussed in a previous post , our family is preparing to move to Queens, New York to … [Read more...] about Jedi Council: Advice for Church Funding Requests